Monday

Sep 9, 2019 at 8:38 AMSep 9, 2019 at 3:03 PM

HAMILTON — In addition to being a Hamilton selectman, Shawn Farrell is an art teacher, with a sculpture currently on display at the Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on the campus of Pingree School on Highland Street.

Farrell’s piece is called “Trispar” and is a 6 foot tall steel structure painted red.

“I’ve been studying sea plants and it morphed into an abstract,” he said. “It’s a little more geometric than my usual forms.”

The medium is recycled steel, which Farrell reshaped from shelving being thrown away at his job in North Andover. Making it took 50-60 hours over a couple of weeks in a studio in his home. He called it “Trispar” as a way of combining the word trident and spar.

What “Trispar” means is up to the viewer, Farrell feels.

“I try not to bash people over the head with meaning,” he said. “I want people to look at it and enjoy it.”

The Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit was conceived a decade ago by Judith Klein, then Pingree's head of marketing and communication, and approved by Head of School Timothy Johnson.

“It’s a gorgeous campus that seemed to be begging to be used for this,” Klein said. “The first year, we had 10 pieces, now there are more than 50.”

Farrell has had an entry all 10 years, having made a connection with Klein through another artist. He also has a piece currently on display at the Crane Estate in Ipswich and has had pieces in the Art Grows Here map guided tour of Hamilton and Wenham, including a robotic looking work outside his own home.

The Flying Horse Exhibition will be on display through Nov. 30, extended this year to allow visitors to enjoy it during the Thanksgiving break.

Klein sees the exhibit as a good way to “expose students to art.”

“To live among art is different than going to museum for a visit and being told to keep quiet,” he said. “This develops a sense that art is something you can enjoy as part of your life. It's also something Pingree does for the surrounding communities, providing art that people can enjoy.”

“The Flying Horse Exhibition transforms our campus every fall,” added Johnson, who holds Bachelors and Masters Degrees in art. “I am grateful for how this mission-driven show celebrates the arts, piques the curiosity of students and colleagues at the start of every school year and brings neighbors and friends from across New England to our grounds. “The exhibition highlights the public purpose of our work as an independent school,” Johnson continued. “I enjoy watching the walls of classrooms melt away as the entire campus becomes a community classroom for advisory groups, classes, families, and outside friends to explore.”